Best Of

Author: Sai Bandaru is a Certified Master Anaplanner with six years of experience architecting Anaplan models.

Hello Anaplanners! In today's fast-paced business environment, having accurate and up-to-date information is crucial for making informed decisions. In this ‘How I Built It’ tutorial, I'll explore a practical and efficient way to refresh the current date in your Anaplan model using Cloudworks.

How to refresh the current date with Cloudworks

Follow along in the video as we walk through the step-by-step process of using Cloudworks to refresh the current date in your Anaplan model. Whether you're a seasoned Anaplan user or just getting started, this tutorial will provide valuable insights into streamlining your workflow and keeping your models dynamically linked to real-time information.

Key benefits

1. Real-time decision making: keeping the current date updated ensures that your models reflect the most recent business context, allowing for more accurate and timely decision-making.
2. Automation for efficiency: Cloudworks simplifies the process, automating the refresh of the current date, saving you time and reducing manual effort.
3. Improved model accuracy: by regularly updating the current date, you can enhance the accuracy of your forecasts, budgets, and plans, leading to more reliable insights.

Conclusion

In conclusion, mastering the art of refreshing the current date in your Anaplan model with Cloudworks is a valuable skill that can significantly impact the effectiveness of your planning and analysis processes.

Questions? Leave a comment!

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All the 'How I Built It' tutorials can be found here.

Here is a link to a downloadable PDF for all of 2023 Product Releases]

2023 Product Releases

@saglago that is fascinating, I definitely forgot about that specific functionality of Versions!

For reference, here is the mini lesson on that functionality: https://community.anaplan.com/kb/articles/63612-edit-from-edit-to

It is useful for whenever input data has the Versions and Time dimensions - if you need to lock version data that is not on the time dimension, then you would need to use Dynamic Cell Access or some other method.

Author: Noah Jackson is a Certified Master Anaplanner and Principal Data and Insights Architect at Anaplan.

Hello Anaplan Community! I’m excited to share this ‘How I Built It’ video with you.

In this tutorial, I walk you through two types of actions that you can add to your Anaplan processes to improve your data access control and validation:

• A “Lock” action and an “Unlock” action that you can use to easily toggle access between different steps of a process.
  
• A “Data Check” action that we will set up to intentionally fail and halt the process when further action is needed.
  

In my sample model I use the “Lock / Unlock” actions to allow a non-Admin end user to import into a table for which they should generally have read only access. I use the “Data Check” action to draw attention to when a new product is added and requires a decision point, which avoids having to re-run imports and reduces the risk of missed steps.

I think these concepts and some of the tips and tricks I cover could be useful in all sorts of contexts; leave a comment if you see something that you think might fit in your models!

Happy planning!

Join us in celebrating @Alessio_Pagliano as our featured Community Member Spotlight for February! Alessio's inspiring journey in the Anaplan ecosystem spans seven years, marked by notable achievements such as becoming a Certified Master Anaplanner and a Community Boss. Explore Alessio's impressive Anaplan journey and contributions below!

About Alessio

We asked Alessio about his background and history with Anaplan. Here’s what we learned!

As a Certified Master Anaplanner, I’ve immersed myself in the Anaplan ecosystem for seven years, wearing various hats for major multinationals. My journey spans both end user and consulting roles, covering a wide range of use cases. Recently, I embarked on an exciting new chapter as a solution architect at Puig.

With Puig’s hypergrowth and ambitious plans for the near future, we’re about to launch our first Anaplan models and I’m very excited to play a pivotal role in the adoption of the tool throughout the company.

We asked Alessio a few questions to get to know him.

Please share an Anaplan success story you’re proud of.

Over the years, I honed my skills working with similar planning tools like Oracle and IBM. In 2017, seeking a fresh challenge, I applied for a finance role in a project leveraging a cutting-edge technology called Anaplan. Despite lacking formal academic finance knowledge, I dedicated myself to learning, studying part-time alongside my new role.

In less than two years, I achieved an accounting diploma with merit, earned the coveted Master Anaplanner certification (back then I was a Certified Master Anaplanner number 89!), and gained invaluable project experiences. These accomplishments were rewarded with a well-deserved promotion.

My journey took an unexpected turn when I dared to dream beyond borders. Since 2005, the UK had been my home, but I harbored an impossible desire: to live and work in Spain, specifically in Sitges — a picturesque seaside gem near Barcelona. Language barriers and Anaplan’s relative obscurity in the country seemed insurmountable.

Fate intervened. A colleague introduced me to a large spirits multinational with an office in Barcelona, and suddenly, my dream became reality. Four years later, I’ve expanded my competencies, accumulated rich experiences, and — almost imperceptibly — become proficient in Spanish.

I am immensely proud of this journey and deeply grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with exceptional professionals and remarkable individuals.

Please share something you can teach about Anaplan — any tips and tricks you’d like to highlight?

Strive to remain well-informed about the roadmap, ensuring you stay up-to-date.

Explore the appropriate support plans to acquire relevant Anaplan certifications, working your way up to the prestigious Certified Master Anaplanner and progress at your own pace.

Moreover, actively engage with the Community. It serves as the optimal platform for knowledge sharing, learning, and expanding your professional network.

Remember, continuous learning and community involvement are key to your growth!

What do you enjoy about the Anaplan Community?

I highly value the Anaplan community as an exceptional resource for knowledge sharing and learning.

It consistently amazes me how swiftly high-quality solutions to complex problems can be obtained, fostering idea exchange and network building. Allow me to share a recent example and extend credit to two individuals. Approximately two weeks ago, I engaged in a discussion on a Community thread led by a Community Boss. The thread involved intricate and challenging questions related to integration, specifically utilizing Python with APIs. On that very day, both @pyrypeura and a former colleague, @M.Kierepka, generously shared their expertise. Subsequently, the Anaplan Operational Excellence Group (OEG) — renowned for their exceptional skills — directly addressed some of my inquiries, providing valuable insights and action points. Their responsiveness exemplifies the Community’s commitment to excellence.

As mentioned earlier, active participation in such communities contributes significantly to professional growth and development.

What's one thing on your bucket list that you hope to accomplish in the next year?

Throughout my previous professional roles, I played an active role in establishing, developing and expanding internal Anaplan Centers of Excellence (CoEs) with setup aligned to a company’s goals.

These CoEs fostered collaboration, growth, governance, best practices and overall success. I hold a firm belief that any company investing in Anaplan and aiming to maximize their ROI should prioritize CoE investment.

Drawing from my relevant experience, I am eager to be the CoE lead, driving this initiative, attract, nurture, and retain top talent, and witness the remarkable results we can achieve together.

On this topic, keep an eye on the job openings here. Particularly if you love the idea of living the dream in the sun and work together.

We currently have this one role advertised, but there could soon be others!

There are now 25 hours in a day! How do you spend your extra hour?

Undoubtedly, I would allocate the additional hour to my family, friends, and personal well-being. I acknowledge that the Anaplan role demands a relentless pace, especially since my transition into it. The primary challenge remains striking the delicate equilibrium between work commitments and personal life. Therefore, that extra hour is unequivocally reserved for my better half, family, close friends, and my recreational pursuits — be it padel, gym workouts, or even football, provided my knee permits!
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We hope you enjoyed learning more about Alessio in this month’s Community Member Spotlight. Thank you, Alessio, for being an outstanding Community contributor and advocate!

Interested in learning more about our Community Member Spotlight series? Check out this post.

Do you know someone in the Community who you think should be featured in a Community Member Spotlight? We want to hear about it — please nominate them here.